Oblivious Love
by ichilover3
Summary: A series of one-shots based on the best couple ever-Ichiruki! Ichigo and Rukia watch a scary movie, go to the beach, and go to a school dance. Fluffy fluff! R&R, pretty please!
1. Movie

I wrote this a while ago, but I figured I might as well post it. Don't worry, these get better as they go along. I guess it's a three-shot.

By the way, I don't own Bleach. I'd sell my house to own Ichigo, though.

* * *

It came from nowhere. In a split second Ichigo was flat on the floor, his head throbbing in pain. This, however, did not stop Ichigo from immediately getting to his feet in a rage. "Dad, what the hell?" In retaliation, he planted his size twelve Converses right in Isshin's face.

"Daddy was just trying to say hello," Isshin complained, holding his nose. It could have been broken.

"Yeah, well you didn't have to punch me in the head!" Ichigo hissed, rubbing the forming lump underneath his bright orange hair. "What do you want?"

"Daddy wanted to tell you that he's taking Karin and Yuzu to a spa for some father-daughter time."

"Yeah, whatever, have fun." The infamous scowl appeared on his face, and he sat down on the couch and turned on the tv.

"We'll be back tomorrow morning. Don't bother Rukia-chan. Ladies need to be treated with respect you know." Isshin got a whimsical look in his eye. "Ah, Rukia-chan reminds me of Masaki. Your mother was such a lady."

Ichigo laughed out loud. Rukia. A _lady_. She was so far from being a lady that she was possibly a man. That thought made Ichigo chuckle again. Not only that, Rukia was _nothing_ like his mother.

"OH, MASAKI, OUR ONLY SON HAS FORSAKEN YOU!" Isshin wailed, kneeling before the gigantic poster of his wife plastered on the wall. "HE DOESN'T BELIEVE HOW MUCH OF A LADY YOU WERE!"

"Hey Beardo, shut up!" Karin had walked into the room, carrying her overnight bag. "I'm already upset. I'm only going to this stupid spa because Yuzu wants me to."

Yuzu herself entered the room, her eyes bright with anticipation. "Come on, Karin, it'll be fun!"

"That's the spirit, Yuzu, Daddy's so happy!" In the blink of an eye, Isshin was finished crying and was now leading Yuzu out the door. "Bye, Onii-chan! I'm taking Bostov!" Yuzu called. Kon looked thrilled. A spa filled with beautiful women…

Karin sighed. "See you later, Ichi-nii." She followed them out the door.

Finally, Ichigo was alone. That had given him a headache, and his head already hurt from the whack his father had given him earlier. He went into the kitchen and grabbed some chips. Ichigo then returned to the couch and grabbed the remote, flipping channels until something caught his eye. _Night of the Robotic Zombies_. Perfect.

He had been watching for only five minutes when he felt something strange. Rukia was leaning on the back of the couch, looking at the tv over his shoulder. Ichigo could feel her breath on his neck, and he could smell her scent.

He told himself that he was only uncomfortable because she was in his bubble.

"What are you watching, Ichigo?" she asked, leaning over him further to get a chip from the bag. She smelled like vanilla and lilac.

"_Night of the Robotic Zombies_. Look, Rukia, if you're going to watch the movie, come sit down, otherwise, go away."

"What's the matter with me standing right here?" Rukia asked, in the mood to annoy him. Slowly and deliberately, she reached for another chip.

"Don't be a bitch." Ichigo held the bag out of her reach, forcing her to come around the couch to get one.

"Oh, so now I'm a bitch," Rukia said loudly, plopping herself down next to him. Ichigo was all too aware of how her leg lightly touched his. Rukia grabbed the bag of chips from Ichigo and started munching down. "What is this movie about?"

Ichigo sighed, annoyed, and tried not to think about her leg. "The zombies go around at night when people are sleeping and implant microchips into their brains. The microchips force the people murder against their will, and eventually turn them into zombies themselves."

"That sounds stupid," Rukia said through a mouthful of chips.

"I don't know, Rukia, this movie might be too scary for you," he said with a smirk. "Maybe we should turn it to that stupid bunny cartoon you always watch."

"For your information," Rukia spat out, getting right in Ichigo's face, "Chappy the Bunny doesn't come on on Saturday nights. And, there is NO WAY a moving picture could scare me. I am a shinigami. I fight Hollows. No zombie could even make me blink." Rukia suddenly seemed to realize just how close her face was to Ichigo's, and sat back down in embarrassment.

"Okay," Ichigo laughed, "but don't go crying to me."

The two of them watched the rest of the movie in silence. A couple of times, during the murder scenes, Rukia would grab hold of Ichigo's arm, much to Ichigo's dismay. He made no move to remove her arm, but during those times he had no clue what his _name_ was, much less what was going on in the movie.

Ichigo snuck a peek at Rukia a couple times and found her eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. Sometimes she would whimper so softly that Ichigo wasn't sure if he heard her or not, and sometimes she would cover her eyes with her hands and peek through her fingers.

When the movie was finally over, Rukia got off the couch and stretched. "That was pretty good." She kept her hands in fists in order to mask their shaking.

"Are you sure you weren't scared?" Ichigo asked skeptically.

Seeing her fists start to shake, Rukia punched him in the stomach. Hard.

Ichigo kneeled over in pain. "Rukia, _what the hell_?!"

"Th-That is for underestimating me. I'm Rukia Kuchiki. _Rukia Kuchiki_. That stupid movie didn't even faze me." She stuck out her tongue. "Nyahh!" Rukia then ran to the bedroom that she shared with Ichigo's sisters.

Ichigo shook his head, and walked, grumbling the whole way, to his room.

In her room, Rukia tried keeping busy. She brought out some of her romance manga and got lost in kisses and scandal. She raided Yuzu's pajama drawer. She played Karin's videogames. All of these were fun, but they were a diversion—Rukia was afraid to sleep. She could have stayed that way, if it hadn't started to rain. She could have just romanced and videogamed her way through the night if the power hadn't gone out.

Of course, Rukia didn't know anything about storms knocking out electricity. All she knew was that the zombies were out to get her. Fumbling in the dark for her zanpakuto, Rukia frantically looked around the dark room, only seeing zombie shadows. She was unable to find what she was looking for, and would not stay in that room any longer. Rukia dashed out of her room and into Ichigo's, planning on spending the night in the safety of her closet.

Just as she quietly opened the closet door, a voice nearly made her jump out of her skin. "Rukia?"

Rukia could faintly see the shadow of Ichigo sitting up in bed. She stared at him in silence, and his shadow seemed to stare back at her. Finally, Ichigo sighed, and Rukia heard the rustling of covers. "Get in."

Dumbfounded but swearing she heard a zombie, Rukia made no objections and climbed into his bed. After making it clear that if he tried anything weird she would kick his ass, Rukia drifted off to sleep.

Ichigo told himself that this meant nothing. After all, he slept with his sisters when they were scared or had nightmares, how was this any different? He was just acting on brotherly instinct. But in her sleep, Rukia drifted towards warmth, which just happened to be Ichigo.

His heart began to beat faster as Rukia cuddled close. He couldn't see her, but he could imagine her long dark eyelashes resting on her pale face. He could feel her raven hair burning holes through his shirt. He could hear her slow, shallow breathing and the occasional snore. The vanilla and lilac that was Rukia wafted teasingly towards him.

He told himself that he didn't move because Rukia would wake up and be thoroughly pissed. Surprisingly, part of him actually wondered whether he was in denial.

It would be a long night.


	2. Beach

I honestly like this oneshot better than the first. Enjoy! Oh, and once again, I don't own Bleach. If I did, Ichigo and Rukia would have been together already.

* * *

"Where are we going, Ichigo?"

Ichigo grunted in annoyance, ignoring giggles and stares from a group of passing girls.

Rukia readjusted her big floppy hat. "Ichigo! _Where are we going_?"

Ichigo remained silent, walking slightly ahead of Rukia.

Rukia was pissed. _Oh, so you want to test me, do you? _She stopped dead in her tracks. "But Ichigo, I thought you _loved _me," she bellowed dramatically.

Ichigo whipped around, his face slightly flushed. "What?"

"Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about!" She was starting to get a crowd.  
"Leaving me for that skank Kimi…"

"Kimi…what the hell…" Ichigo was beginning to get nervous; several spectators were shaking their heads at him disgustedly.

"Ichigo, how could you, _I'm with child!_" she cried, her voice filled with phony emotion. A murmur went around the crowd, and a couple people gasped.

At that moment, Ichigo was positive that Rukia was the devil himself. His right eyebrow twitched with fury as he turned around and grabbed Rukia's hand. "Can't you understand the concept of surprises?" he hissed at her, so quiet only she could hear. He continued to guide her to the destination, dragging her away from the crowd of people that had formed.

"Where the hell did you learn that from?" Ichigo was no longer angry. He was now dead tired, and it was only ten o'clock. That's what Rukia did to him.

"It's a monologue from a soap opera that I saw yesterday," Rukia stated proudly, looking smug. "Where are we going?"

Ichigo sighed, and then admitted defeat. "The beach. Chad and Inoue and everyone are waiting for us there."

Rukia's face was furrowed in confusion. "The…beach?"

"You'll see. We have to make a stop first."

They continued walking in silence. Rukia glanced up at Ichigo, noticing how the sun lit up his profile. His bright orange hair seemed to be radiating light. For some reason, her stomach began to feel funny, and at that moment, she noticed that they were still holding hands.

Ichigo didn't seem to notice, and she wasn't going to point it out because his hands amazed her. It amazed her that they were twice the size as hers, and what they were capable of was even more astonishing. They were strong, and could beat a person to a bloody pulp, but at the same time, those hands were gentle, carefully cradling hers.

This is what she told herself. It was the truth. Well, partially true. Rukia refused to acknowledge that holding Ichigo's hand made her happy.

"What's so funny?" Ichigo had to look way down to see her face. She really was short.

Rukia hadn't realized that a smile had crept onto her face. "Nothing." She discreetly removed her hand from Ichigo's and used it to nervously readjust her hat.

He hadn't realized he had her hand until it was gone. He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Well, we're here."

Rukia wrinkled her nose. "This store is the beach?"

Ichigo couldn't stop the smile from reaching his face. Dammit. He had an image to uphold, you know. "This isn't the beach. We have to get you a bathing suit first."

"A what?"

Ichigo pulled a pink bikini off one of the racks. "One of these."

Rukia gasped dramatically, putting a hand over her heart. "You can't expect me to show my goodies to everybody," she exclaimed pompously.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at her, wondering where the hell she got her vocabulary from. He was getting more tired by the minute. "No one wants to see your flat-chested midget ass anyway. Just pick one."

He didn't see the punch coming, but he really should have.

Rukia stalked off in a huff, looking through the racks. After trying on a million different swimsuits in a million different colors, she settled on a cerulean bikini that really brought out her indigo eyes.

She looked good.

After Ichigo paid for her stuff, they continued on to the beach. Rukia gasped in wonder, making Ichigo smile. She was acting like a little kid.

"Oooh, look, look, where does the water stop?" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm in excitement. "It's so blue! What's this stuff on the ground? It's soft. Geez, there are a lot of people. You know I hate crowds! Are you even listening to me? Oooh, look, a bird!"

"There they are," he said finally, nodding his head in their direction.

"Kurosaki-kun! Kuchiki-san! Over here!" Orihime was waving her hands wildly, as if they hadn't seen her already. She was in a red one piece swimsuit, and as usual, her boobs were covered up in effort not to bring attention to them. Unfortunately, and also as usual, her humungous knockers brought attention to themselves and were getting ogled by most of the guys on the beach.

Orihime wasn't the only one there. She had brought Tatsuki with her, and Chad and Uryu were sitting on towels. "Took you long enough," Uryu spat at Ichigo. Believe it or not, he was wearing swim trunks with the Quincy cross all over them.

"Shut up," Ichigo said, pulling his shirt over his head.

Rukia unconsciously stopped breathing. Had Ichigo always been so deliciously ripped? If this were a manga she would be drooling a little.

"Come here, Rukia," he said, pulling a bottle of sunscreen out of his bag. Rukia just stared at him. "Come on, you need to put some of this on or you'll burn," he stated forcefully, squeezing some in his hand and reaching for her.

"No!" Rukia said, slinking away from all that beautiful muscle. "Come on Inoue, show me around."

"No problemo!" Orihime went into full guide mode. She grabbed Rukia's hand. "Let's go! To the water! Yay!"

"Whatever," Ichigo muttered, watching Orihime drag Rukia to the water and slathering himself in sunscreen. "Don't come crying to me."

"Ichigo," Chad bellowed.

Ichigo looked up from what he was doing. "What's up, Chad?"

Chad just looked at him. He could tell that there was something between those two, but he could also tell that either they didn't realize it or they chose to ignore it. Finally, he said, "Never mind."

Ichigo looked perplexed. "Okay."

"Come on guys," Tatsuki said, stretching. "Let's play some volleyball." Chad and Ichigo followed her, followed reluctantly by Ishida.

* * *

"Ah, AH, the water's cold!" Rukia shrieked as a wave hit her from behind.

Orihime laughed hysterically. "This is so much fun!" She bent down and started splashing Rukia, oblivious, as usual, to all of the guys staring at her.

Rukia coughed, choking on the saltwater. "St-stop, Inoue," she sputtered. When the splashing did not cease, she bopped Orihime on the head with her fist. "I SAID STOP!"

"I'm sorry," Orihime whimpered, a tear in her eye. Her crying quickly stopped when she saw something on shore. "Ice cream! I _love_ ice cream! I'll be right back, Kuchiki-san," she called, running out of the water.

Rukia smiled. You had to love her.

She continued to stay in the water, feeling it wrap her body in cool comfort. She didn't venture deeper than her waist, though, because she couldn't swim and had no intention of drowning.

_The real world is great_. As soon as that thought echoed through her head, a huge wave came from behind and knocked her over.

She surfaced sputtering and pissed. "Stupid ocean! I almost _died_!"

A strange feeling came over Rukia. Something was different; something was off. She was looking around, trying to figure out what was wrong, when she noticed her bikini top was gone.

A small shriek escaped her lips. She crouched down on the sea floor, the water now covering her upper half as well as her bottom. In a panic, she searched around her for the fabric that covered her. It was gone. Oh crap.

She stayed like that for a while, pondering her next move. What should she do? She couldn't stay like this forever; her knees were starting to hurt and her skin was pruning. Rukia sighed deeply, and then noticed that Orihime had returned from getting her ice cream.

"Inoue!" Rukia called frantically, "could you come here for a sec?"

Orihime glanced at Rukia in the water. "Oh, Kuchiki-san! That's okay, I'm done swimming."

"No, Inoue, please come over here," Rukia called, a touch of panic in her voice.

"Oh, no, I'm fine right here," she called back, taking a lick of her ice cream. "Maybe later. Oh my God, is that CAKE?"

"No, no, Inoue, come back!" Rukia called helplessly after the running girl, watching Orihime wave at her.

Dumb bimbo.

How else could she get out of here? She looked around. Tatsuki, Chad, and Uryu were playing some sort of game with a white ball. She sighed. She would just have to find Ichigo and get him to help her.

She looked around and found him sitting under his umbrella, surrounded by a group of busty girls. Rukia became infuriated. _Stupid Ichigo! Why'd you have to be so good-looking?!_

Wait, what was that thought?

_Stupid._

No, the other one.

_Um… asshole._

Oh, okay.

Rukia would die before she asked him to help her! She crossed her arms stubbornly. It was getting sort of cold.

* * *

"Come on," one of the girls cooed. "Don't you want to swim with us?"

Ichigo was starting to get annoyed. Can't these girls take a hint? He had been ignoring them for five minutes, but they kept pestering him. "No thanks."

"Are you sure?" another asked, practically pushing her breasts in his face.

Ichigo closed his eyes in order to control his annoyance. He opened them again. "I'm sure."

The leader of the girls sighed. "What a shame. Come on girls, he's boring." They finally left him alone.

"Hey Ichigo," Tatsuki called, "we're going to get some lunch. Wanna come?" She and the other guys had stopped playing volleyball and had returned under the umbrella.

"Sure." He needed a break from the beach vibe anyway. He stood up, dusting sand off of himself. "I'll go get Rukia."

"Okay, we'll meet you there," Tatsuki replied, looking for Orihime.

Ichigo searched the waters for Rukia, finally finding her head seemingly floating three feet out. "What…are you doing?"

"Nothing." _Why am I so stubborn?_ Rukia thought to herself. "Just enjoying the water."

"Okay, well it's lunchtime. Come on out."

"No."

Ichigo looked at her. "Rukia, you can get back in when we come back. Come on."

There was nothing else she could do. "I…I can't."

"Why not?

Rukia took a deep breath. "Um…oh hell! My bikini top is gone, okay! I can't get out; I'll flash people."

A funny expression passed over Ichigo's face. He didn't say anything, he just walked to his stuff and came back.

He got close enough to hand her the towel, but still kept his distance. "Here." He turned his head away from her until he heard her splashing to her feet.

Rukia's joints were sore and her skin wrinkled. "Thanks," she muttered, heading back towards the umbrella to find her dress.

"Rukia," Ichigo called after her, following her to the umbrella. "Rukia."

She had reached her destination and was searching through the bag with one hand while holding onto her towel with the other.

"Rukia."

His soft tone made her turn around and look him in the eye.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

For once in her life, Rukia was speechless. She decided to continue looking for her dress instead of confess. Finally, she was forced to admit it—her dress was not in the bag. "It's not here." She bit her lip. She must have left it in the swimsuit store.

Ichigo reached over her and into the bag. "Put this on." He handed her his shirt and pointed to a changing tent.

The shirt was long on her, landing just a little above her knees. Rukia tried not to think about how much the shirt smelled like him. Ichigo tried not to think about how nothing was under that shirt but bikini bottoms.

By now, the sun was starting to set and people were going home. They sat under the umbrella, watching nothing and watching everything. "This is the longest lunch I have ever seen," Rukia stated. "They left hours ago."

"Probably got distracted." He looked at her. "Are you hungry?"

Rukia shook her head. "I'm content looking at the sunset. It's so pretty."

It was true. The sky was lit up with yellow, orange, red, and even purple, all over the sparkling blue sea.

"I used to come to the beach all the time," Ichigo said suddenly, not really to her, but to the universe. He smiled. "My mom loved it here."

Rukia looked at Ichigo, her knees hugged to her chest and the shirt pulled over them. "Why'd you stop?"

"She died." He looked over the water at nothing in particular. "It made me sad to come here."

"What's so different now?" Rukia wondered out loud. "Are you sad now?"

He finally looked at her. For a couple seconds, that's all he did, look at her. Then he smiled, and said, "No."

She had returned to looking over the water when she felt his hand on her face. Ichigo was using his thumb to wipe away sand. His eyes squinted in concentration as he worked. Finally, when sand was gone to his satisfaction, he removed his hand and started to take it back.

Rukia caught it before he could.

She wasn't sure why, but she had grabbed his hand, surprising both of them.

They stared at each other. Neither of them blinked, and they hardly breathed; they just took each other in without saying a word. Their hearts were beating a mile a minute.

Then, as if there was a magnet, they slowly started moving towards each other, closing the gap between them. Ever so slowly, not taking their eyes off one another, as if they were afraid they would miss something. They continued until their lips were millimeters apart and stopped there, as if asking each other for permission.

A loud voice broke them out of their trance. "There you guys are!" Orihime yelled running towards them. She didn't seem to notice how far away they sat from one another or their red, embarrassed faces. "We would have waited at the restaurant, but Tatsuki noticed an arcade, and her and the boys started playing…anyway, on the way back, we saw a pastry shop. Do you guys want to come?"

Ichigo was the first to speak. "Sure, why not." He stood up, dusted himself off, and reached out his hand to help Rukia up. She accepted it, and once on her feet, shook sand off of Ichigo's shirt.

"So Kuchiki-san," Orihime started when the three of them started walking towards the others, "how did you like your first trip to the beach?"

Rukia spoke truthfully. "Well, it was…interesting." But it didn't matter because Orihime was too busy thinking about the pie she would eat once they got to the pastry shop, and Ichigo was too busy trying not to think about what was under his shirt and failing miserably at it.

Ichigo never got that shirt back.


	3. Renji

**Hello again! This is the last one-shot. I think that it is the cutest of them all, but it is also slightly cheesy. Oh well, I hope you like cheese! ;)**

**If you liked this, I have another that has yet to be posted, so be on the lookout. Also, I would really appreciate it if you read my other story, "Frosted Dreams." I think that it is one of my best, and I encourage you to read it even if you don't like the Hitsukarin paring. Thanks for reading!**

**I don't own Bleach. If I did, Hinamori would just SHUT UP ABOUT AIZEN ALREADY!**

* * *

"Ichigo, you're facing the _wrong_ way!" Rukia screamed at him.

Ichigo jumped to the side, almost getting impaled in the head. "Shit!"  
"He's to the left, to the left!" Rukia pointed, as if that would make a difference. The Hollow was fast.

"Shut the hell up, I know what I'm doing!" Ichigo turned around, but the Hollow had already moved. Suddenly, it was behind Rukia. Ichigo tackled her, the Hollow's tail skewering him through his midsection.

"HA, HA, HA," the Hollow laughed, whipping his tail around and Ichigo with it. "STUPID SHINIGAMI. YOU SHOULD HAVE LET YOUR LITTLE GIRLFRIEND DIE PEACEFULLY. NOW YOU'RE GOING TO WATCH AS I RIP HER LIMB BY LIMB."

Ichigo lifted Zangetsu and chopped the Hollow's head clean off. He fell to the ground, blood flowing from the new hole in his body. Rukia rushed over to him.

"You idiot!" she screamed at him. "When will you learn to stop worrying about me? I can take care of myself."

Ichigo coughed. "He almost killed you." He sat up slowly, trying not to lose more blood than he had to.

Rukia bit her lip, refusing to cry. When would he stop being so reckless? Sometimes, he made her so _mad_. In her fury, she smacked him in the head before helping him up.

They walked home, Rukia supporting Ichigo as they did. He was in no more pain than he usually was when a hole was made in his body, and he was relieved that Rukia didn't get hurt. About a block from their house, the two saw Renji.

"Aw, Ichigo," he laughed, "not as strong as you think you are, eh?"

"Shut up, Renji," Ichigo said through clenched teeth. "What do you want?"

"Well, I was on my way to your house to ask Rukia if she wanted to see a movie."

Rukia gasped. "I've never been to a theater before."

Ichigo had always intended to take her, but he never got around to it.

Renji's whole face lit up. "I went with Ururu and Jinta yesterday, and it was amazing! The picture was huge, and the food was great. They have this thing called popcorn…"

Rukia laughed. "Okay, okay. You're on, Renji. Just let me drop Ichigo off."

Ichigo had a weird feeling in his stomach, and it wasn't just the wind blowing through his torso. Rukia was talking about him as if he were some dog, a burden of some sort. He ripped his arm off of Rukia's shoulders, and Rukia let go of him in surprise.

"Go," he said, not looking at her. "It's not like I can't walk a block."

She looked at him with concern for a second, then shrugged and looked at Renji. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah. Let's go see what's playing." They walked away, talking loudly and laughing.

Ichigo limped the last block home. What was wrong with him? Was he actually _jealous_? It's not like he _liked_ Rukia or anything. Anyway, it was Renji. _Renji_. Renji was his friend. Besides, he knew that Renji and Rukia were just really good friends. What was he worried about? As he jumped through his window to regain his body from Kon, Ichigo decided that what he was really feeling. He felt left out.

No big deal. Next time he would just tag along.

* * *

Ichigo paced his room, Kon watching curiously.

Rukia never came home last night.

He had waited up for her, just to make sure that she came home safely, but he hadn't felt her reiatsu anywhere near his house. For a while he worried that something had happened to her, but then he remembered how unlikely that was, considering Renji was with her.

Ichigo stuffed his books in his backpack, pissed off. She could have at least called.

He walked downstairs. "Onii-chan!" Yuzu called. "Breakfast is ready."

"Not hungry. See you guys later." He walked out the door, headed towards school.

Karin looked after him. _That's strange_, she thought to herself. _Ichi-nii never skips breakfast._

Ichigo had walked halfway when he saw her. She was leaning a wall, seemingly waiting for him. "There you are," she said when she spotted him, hands on her hips. "I was just about to go on without you."

Ichigo didn't answer her. He was relieved that Rukia was okay, but he was still mad.

"Oh," Rukia taunted, "someone's moody today." She looked surprised when Ichigo walked past her without acknowledgement, but quickly caught up with him. "What's your problem?"

_You're my problem._ "Why didn't you come home last night?"

"Renji and I saw two movies." Rukia had to take quick steps to keep up with his long stride. She was surprised to see that for some reason Ichigo's jaw was clenched. "Then we got caught up talking about old times. What's the big deal?"

Ichigo stopped walking. "I waited for you to come home!" he yelled at her. "Now I'm tired."

Rukia stood on tiptoe in order to get as much in his face as possible. "I _told_ you that I can take care of myself. You being tired is your own damn fault."

Secretly, though, she was happy that he had worried about her.

"Have it your way." Ichigo continued walking. He was too tired to argue with her, and he was starting to sound like he was her dad or something. "After school we need to stop and get some chips."

"Why?"

Ichigo glanced at her incredulously. "It's Kurosaki Bingo Night. Don't tell me you forgot."

Rukia felt terrible. "I already have plans."

"What plans? You know that we have Kurosaki Bingo Night on Thursdays."

She explained to him that Renji had asked her to do a thing called bowling and she had been so excited that she had forgotten what day it was. Ichigo didn't respond.

"Ichigo, I'm sorry," Rukia said sincerely, trying to get him to look at her. "But I've been to a lot of Kurosaki Bingo Nights and it wouldn't hurt to miss just one. Besides, it's not like I'm a Kurosaki or anything."

"Yeah, well tell that to my dad." He looked straight ahead, still refusing to even look in her direction. "It doesn't matter. Go." The only thing that got him through Kurosaki Bingo Nights was observing the way Rukia interacted with his family—his dad had to drag him kicking and screaming before she came.

Rukia was surprised at the ease Ichigo gave in. He must not have cared if she came or not.

They had finally reached school, and no longer had to talk about bowling or bingo.

* * *

If anything, Ichigo was mad at himself. He had always intended to take Rukia bowling, but he could never find time, on account of Hollows and her almost getting executed. It seemed that Renji was taking his place.

"Lunchtime!" Orihime squealed. "Food, food, food…"

As usual, they were all having lunch on the roof. Keigo was rambling on and on about how Mizuiro didn't invite him to a party, Tatsuki was grimacing at the things Orihime was eating, and Ichigo was talking to Chad.

Rukia felt bad. She was starting to realize that she hadn't seen much of Ichigo lately, which was a hard feat, considering they lived in the same house. She purposely sat next to him at lunch, hoping to show him that she hadn't forgotten about him.

"Hey Ichigo," she said softly, trying not to draw any attention to herself. When he looked at her, she asked in her most helpless voice, "Can you open this juice box?"

Ichigo didn't seem to notice the hint. "Do it yourself, it's not like you don't know how anymore."

Shot down.

"Ichigo!" Keigo suddenly shouted, appearing over their shoulders. "Tell Mizuiro to hook us up with some hot girls. He could get us dates for the school dance."

"What school dance?" Ichigo asked, pushing Keigo away from him.

"You haven't heard?" Keigo's mouth dropped in horror. He was such a drama queen. "There's going to be balloons and cake and close proximity to lovely ladies and their lovely ti—"

He was cut off by Tatsuki punching him in the face. "Perv," she muttered.

Rukia's eyes lit up. A dance! It sounded like so much fun, and what an excuse to get dressed up. She peeked at Ichigo. Maybe she could get him to take her…

"Mizuiro, you have to help us!" Keigo was on his knees, begging for this one bit of happiness.

"I don't know, Asano-san," Mizuiro replied, texting on his cell phone.

"Why are you being so formal with me-ee!" Keigo wailed. "I thought we were friends. Ichigo, tell Mizuiro to get us hot dates!"

"Tell him yourself," Ichigo said, chewing on his sandwich, "Kurosaki Ichigo does not do dances."

Shot down again, and she hadn't even said anything this time! Rukia was getting mad now. When they got home, she was going to convince him to take her. She _really_ wanted to go.

"That's because Kurosaki Ichigo can't dance," Uryu said from a corner.

"What did you just say?" Ichigo yelled, standing up. "Say that to my face!"

"You heard me." Uryu was standing now too. "The tip of my pinky has more grace than your whole body."

Chad watched to make sure the squabble didn't turn physical, Keigo moaned about how much he wanted a girlfriend, Orihime finished her lunch and eyed Tatsuki's, and Ichigo finally returned to his spot next to Rukia, mumbling about "that damn Quincy." Basically, it was a normal lunch.

* * *

It was late. Rukia stepped through Ichigo's window, headed towards her closet. She was afraid of waking the twins, and she didn't feel like explaining why she was coming home at three in the morning.

"Ichigo." He didn't answer her. She stood by his bed, looking at him. "Ichigo." No response. _He must be asleep_, Rukia thought, still staring at his sleeping form.

He looked so peaceful when he slept. He usually had some sort of scowl on his face, but when he was sleeping, his true self showed. Rukia was overcome with the urge to touch him.

She reached out her hand, her gaze for some reason focusing on his lips. Just as she was about to explore the curves of his face, she thought the better of it and snatched her hand back. What was she _doing_? She obviously hadn't been getting enough sleep. Perplexed at herself, Rukia climbed into her closet and closed the door.

Ichigo exhaled the breath he had been holding. Rukia's scent lingered.

* * *

They were walking home from school one day when he decided to do it. Normally, dances weren't Ichigo's style, but Rukia had been talking about it all week and he thought it would be interesting to take her to her first dance.

"Hey Rukia," he started, looking down at her, "did you want to go to that school dance?"

Silence. Rukia looked at him in wonder. Did he just ask her out?

"Ichigo, I'm already going with Renji."

Renji.

"I'm really sorry," Rukia started, but Ichigo cut her off.

"No big deal." He was trying really hard not to let the shame and embarrassment show in his face. "I didn't really want to go anyway. I just wanted you to go."

There was an awkward silence. Why did Rukia feel like she couldn't breathe? Why did Ichigo feel like his insides were being shredded?

Suddenly, Ichigo's Hollow sensor went off. There was now no need to think about the emotions that were smothering them.

Ichigo was at home watching soccer on tv with Karin. He wasn't really a soccer person, but it was a distraction from the confusion in his head.

"AAGH!" Karin put her hands over her head. "He was OPEN!"

Ichigo smiled. "It's just a game, Karin."

She didn't seem to hear him. "AAGH! DUMBASS!"

The doorbell rang, but Karin was too busy yelling at the television to notice. It didn't matter, because Yuzu answered it. "Onii-chan!" she called, "one of your friends is here."

Ichigo looked over his shoulder, too lazy to get up. It was Renji.

"Yo, Ichigo."

"Hey." Ichigo swallowed. "If you're looking for Rukia, she's not here. She went shopping with Inoue."

"Nope." Renji walked around the couch and sat down. "I came to hang out with you."

"Oh, okay." There was silence as both stared at the tv. Karin was momentarily distracted by Renji's 70's getup and tattoos, but she returned to her soccer game with renewed vigor. She was extremely excited when she found out that Renji knew nothing about soccer, and took it upon herself to explain the basics to him.

In no time at all, Renji was yelling just like Karin, pissed off at the players and the calls the referee was making. The energy of the room made Ichigo smile, but he quickly turned it into a sort of smirk. He had an image to uphold, you know.

"Ichigo, go get me some grub," Renji ordered, leaning back on the couch.

"Get your own damn snacks," Ichigo replied.

There was an elephant in the room, and everyone was ignoring it.

"I'm the guest here," Renji snapped. "You should be offering me food."

"No one asked your ass to come over here anyway," Ichigo countered.

Renji grinned, then continued watching the television. Eventually, Yuzu entered with snacks anyway, and sat down, complaining that she didn't understand the concept of soccer.

"We've been friends for a long time," Renji said quietly, startling Ichigo. "I…I won't give up that easily."

"Neither will I." The words escaped his lips before he had even thought about it, but once they were said, Ichigo knew that they were true.

Renji smiled, then got up and stretched. "I'd better go. Karin, I had fun, and thanks for the snacks, Yuzu." He nodded at Ichigo, then left.

"You sure have some strange friends, Ichi-nii," Karin observed.

* * *

"Tatsuki, you have to go to the dance with me," Ichigo begged. "Please?"

"No can do Ichigo." Tatsuki wasn't even looking at him, concentrating on sharpening her pencil. "Goes against the code."

"What code?" Ichigo was desperate. He needed a date. He wasn't going to sit at home by himself while everyone else was having fun; his dad would never let him hear the end of it.

"You don't date someone who your friend likes."

Oh, that code. Too bad Renji's not familiar with it.

"Ask Orihime." Tatsuki finally looked him in the eye. "Between you and me, she's been hoping that you would ask."

"Inoue?" It seemed like a solid plan; Ichigo could handle being her date. "Thanks, Tatsuki."

When he asked her, she turned pink and accepted right away. "I knew that you were going to take Kuchiki-san, but I still hoped."

Ichigo nodded in reply and then asked what color her dress was. That was that. He tried to ignore the pang in his heart.

* * *

It was the night of the dance. Ichigo had picked up Orihime, who looked very pretty in a yellow halter dress, and had given her the corsage he had bought for her. "Oh, thank you!" she cooed, her eyes bright with excitement.

The gang met at a restaurant before the dance to eat and converse. Ichigo came with Orihime, Tatsuki with Chad, Mizuiro with a mystery babe, and Rukia with Renji. Keigo and Uryu came alone, though Uryu had considered asking Chizuru before realizing how desperate that was.

They were sitting down eating, but Ichigo had a hard time keeping his mind on the food. He kept looking across the table at Rukia and Renji. It seemed that they were sitting way too close, and Renji had slung his arm over the back of her chair.

To make matters worse, Rukia looked stunning. She had done something to her hair; it was twisted into some sort of updo. Her dress looked like it was made for a princess, strapless and red with a poofy bottom. It seemed to accentuate her small frame.

"Dateless, again," Keigo moaned ."Why me?"

"It's okay Asano-kun," Orihime soothed between mouthfuls of her food.

Ichigo looked at her. "Inoue, are you really going to eat all of that?"

She looked down, noticing for the first time that she had ordered twice as much food as everyone else. "I sure am!" She answered, giving him a thumbs-up.

Tatsuki laughed. "You're a growing girl, right Orihime?"

Ichigo picked up his napkin absentmindedly, brotherly instinct taking over. "You're making a mess," he told Orihime, wiping her mouth with it. Orihime blushed profusely, and for some reason, Ichigo caught Uryu staring at him.

He tried eating, but he didn't taste any of the food he shoveled into his mouth. He spent most of the time sneaking peeks at Rukia and Renji, making small talk with Orihime, and wondering why Uryu kept looking at him. By time it was time for dessert, he needed a break and excused himself.

It was raining outside, really pouring. Ichigo leaned against the restaurant wall, protected by the overhang. It was getting harder and harder to sit there and pretend that nothing was wrong.

"Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime was standing there, looking very concerned. "You were gone for a while, so I thought I'd come and check on you."

"I'm sorry, Inoue." Ichigo knew what he had to do. This wasn't fair to her. "I just…I can't do this anymore."

Orihime looked at him, a sad smile on her face. "I know." She looked at her shoes, then out into the pouring rain.

Ichigo smiled. "Besides, there is _the code_ to consider."

"What code?" Orihime asked, looking back up at him.

"Never mind." Ichigo took her hand. "Hey, you should talk to Ishida, he seems lonely."

_Not as lonely as you_, Orihime wanted to say. Instead, she nodded.

"I really am sorry, Inoue." He let go of her hand, and started walking into the rain, not really knowing where he was going. Ichigo just knew that he had to get away from here.

He had only gotten about two blocks away when he thought he heard his name being called. Ichigo turned, but all he saw was rain pouring onto the sidewalk. He kept walking.

"ICHIGO!"

The punch hit him square in the face. His hand shot up to his face reflexively, and he looked in shock at Rukia.

Her hair had come undone, and her dress was pretty much ruined. "How dare you!" she vented. "Are you trying to ruin this for me?!"

Ichigo just listened, confused and still shocked.

She smacked him. "How _dare_ you? How dare you!? HOW DARE YOU!" With each sentence she pushed him, until Ichigo grabbed her by the arms and forced her to stop.

She looked at the ground, breathing heavily. When she looked up again, Ichigo was horrified to find tears streaking her face. "Y-You think I didn't notice you flirting with Inoue?" she shrieked. "You think I didn't notice how you kept checking to see if I saw you? Were you trying to get me jealous? Congratulations, it worked!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Suddenly, Ichigo was mad too. "Besides, you are the _last_ person who should be mad! You've been ditching me for Renji!"

"You're the one who said you didn't want to go to this dance!" she yelled. "I thought it wasn't that big of a deal when Renji asked me. Remember? _It's not your style_."

"It's not." Ichigo's temper flared. "That doesn't mean that I didn't want to go with _you_!"

"Well, it sure didn't seem like it!"

"How the hell would you know?! You were too busy with Renji to notice me!"

"HOW COULD I NOT NOTICE YOU? I LOVE YOU!"

Her words rang through the air. The rain poured down and raced into the gutters. They panted, seemingly out of things to scream at each other. It took a second for them to realize what they had each confessed.

Rukia covered her mouth with her hand. Had she really said that? She had never thought about it before, but now that it was out in the open she realized that she always had.

She loved Ichigo.

Ichigo stared at her in wonder, not sure he had heard her right. Her hair was plastered to the side of her head, and her makeup was running. Her dress was waterlogged and the hem muddy.

He thought she was the most beautiful thing that he had ever seen.

Rukia was going crazy with anticipation. Why wasn't he saying anything? She had just professed her love to him and all he could do was stare at her. She was just starting to panic when Ichigo kissed her.

He cradled her face and kissed her, in the middle of rain and tears and makeup.

When they parted, they looked at each other. This wasn't a dream. This was really happening.

Suddenly, Ichigo held out his hand. "Do you want to dance?"

Rukia looked around. It was pouring, and people with umbrellas were staring. They were in the middle of the sidewalk. Cars were whizzing by.

It didn't matter. She took his hand and they started to dance right there. It started off normally, but soon turned into more of an embrace. They held each other, swaying in the rain to music only they could hear.

Rukia smiled. If this was what school dances were like, she couldn't wait for the next one.


End file.
